Home » Business » Biz Commentary
Trailblazer in reaching for the clouds
By Egidio Zarrella |
May 17, 2012, Thursday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
THE Chinese marketplace is transforming itself into one of the most dynamic and competitive in the world.
The changing nature of its domestic market and its consumers is having a profound impact economically, socially and politically. This is also having a geographic impact globally, regionally and within China itself.
The Chinese consumer is using the Internet, if not more frequently, then at greater levels than their consumer counterparts in the West. In our latest report, "The Converged Lifestyle," we see the Chinese consumer and indeed consumers across Asia becoming more technology savvy with an increased take up of smartphones, iPad-type technology, and personal computers.
To illustrate some examples, Chinese consumers are opting for greater online and mobile services, with various technology initiatives being offered by the government. Some of them have access to state of the art technology many Westerns can only start to wish for. We have seen from our study that as Chinese consumers demand more services online, they want better and faster mobile and online banking. China, in many ways, is pushing the envelope in this space.
Greater penetration
More transactions are processed in China and in Asia than all mobile payments in the Western world. In some Western countries, mobile technology take-up has slowed. Not so in China. The Chinese consumer and the banks are driving greater penetration and use of payments online. This will lead to interesting changes in the purchasing patterns of the Chinese consumer. In some cases, the Chinese domestic market will become a place to see how technology will be taken up. What happens in China in this space will be exported across the globe.
In the coming years, with significant investment in infrastructure by the government, state-owned and privately owned enterprises, the use of mobile banking will exceed that of the Western world. I foresee that China UnionPay will be one of the world leaders in processing payments. It is the growing mobility and demand of the Chinese consumers and their growing technology skills that will put China as one of the leading innovators in this space.
Many of the online payment providers in China are leading the way in designing and developing apps that can assist both the banks and consumers in more secure and faster payments transactions. This payments transformation is allowing the Chinese consumer to buy anywhere and anytime.
The Chinese government has also taken some interesting steps in terms of cloud computing, which I refer to as the "virtualisation of a nation."
The government in the next five years will spend US$154 billion on building cloud technology. This is a greater expenditure than the collective outlays of many of the Western governments and will enable Chinese consumers to access different technologies and online services.
Use as you go
Such services will allow the Chinese consumer to exploit technology for businesses and personal use.
Such cloud infrastructure, and the principle of "use as you go," will allow for greater penetration of technology to more of the Chinese population.
It is a smart and innovative move that the Chinese government has seen cloud as a major infrastructure to allow greater access to technology to more people across China.
We see even some of major technology multinational corporations, like Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard, setting world-class cloud centres in China. The ecosystem of this future technological platform is being set up in many Chinese cities. The Chinese government has identified five cities, including Beijing and Shanghai, to lead the way. Chinese consumers and, by extension, many Western companies that are located in those cities will also benefit.
The whole concept of the cloud will drive greater efficiency and better pricing for the Chinese consumer and, ultimately, the global consumer.
Volume game
It is in the great scale of its population and the volume of transactions that are being processed that China will leapfrog the West in this space. Technology and its pricing are basically a volume game. China has the scale to drive innovation and more flexible pricing models.
The Chinese consumer, in many ways, is similar to Western consumer in terms of desire for data privacy. Misuse by unscrupulous merchants raises concerns. However, Chinese authorities have demonstrated that these breaches will not be tolerated.
Security is an issue but it does not halt the take-up of technology by the consumer. We also see many corporates take security seriously, and it's important to not underestimate the power of demand. People want this technology and like it benefits.
The Chinese consumer is leading the way in terms of technology take-up and innovation.
Just as the world's largest luxury market now sits in China, so too does the world's largest mobile banking market, and so too will cloud infrastructure. This bodes well for the Chinese consumer who will have access to the best state of the art technology globally.
The changing nature of its domestic market and its consumers is having a profound impact economically, socially and politically. This is also having a geographic impact globally, regionally and within China itself.
The Chinese consumer is using the Internet, if not more frequently, then at greater levels than their consumer counterparts in the West. In our latest report, "The Converged Lifestyle," we see the Chinese consumer and indeed consumers across Asia becoming more technology savvy with an increased take up of smartphones, iPad-type technology, and personal computers.
To illustrate some examples, Chinese consumers are opting for greater online and mobile services, with various technology initiatives being offered by the government. Some of them have access to state of the art technology many Westerns can only start to wish for. We have seen from our study that as Chinese consumers demand more services online, they want better and faster mobile and online banking. China, in many ways, is pushing the envelope in this space.
Greater penetration
More transactions are processed in China and in Asia than all mobile payments in the Western world. In some Western countries, mobile technology take-up has slowed. Not so in China. The Chinese consumer and the banks are driving greater penetration and use of payments online. This will lead to interesting changes in the purchasing patterns of the Chinese consumer. In some cases, the Chinese domestic market will become a place to see how technology will be taken up. What happens in China in this space will be exported across the globe.
In the coming years, with significant investment in infrastructure by the government, state-owned and privately owned enterprises, the use of mobile banking will exceed that of the Western world. I foresee that China UnionPay will be one of the world leaders in processing payments. It is the growing mobility and demand of the Chinese consumers and their growing technology skills that will put China as one of the leading innovators in this space.
Many of the online payment providers in China are leading the way in designing and developing apps that can assist both the banks and consumers in more secure and faster payments transactions. This payments transformation is allowing the Chinese consumer to buy anywhere and anytime.
The Chinese government has also taken some interesting steps in terms of cloud computing, which I refer to as the "virtualisation of a nation."
The government in the next five years will spend US$154 billion on building cloud technology. This is a greater expenditure than the collective outlays of many of the Western governments and will enable Chinese consumers to access different technologies and online services.
Use as you go
Such services will allow the Chinese consumer to exploit technology for businesses and personal use.
Such cloud infrastructure, and the principle of "use as you go," will allow for greater penetration of technology to more of the Chinese population.
It is a smart and innovative move that the Chinese government has seen cloud as a major infrastructure to allow greater access to technology to more people across China.
We see even some of major technology multinational corporations, like Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard, setting world-class cloud centres in China. The ecosystem of this future technological platform is being set up in many Chinese cities. The Chinese government has identified five cities, including Beijing and Shanghai, to lead the way. Chinese consumers and, by extension, many Western companies that are located in those cities will also benefit.
The whole concept of the cloud will drive greater efficiency and better pricing for the Chinese consumer and, ultimately, the global consumer.
Volume game
It is in the great scale of its population and the volume of transactions that are being processed that China will leapfrog the West in this space. Technology and its pricing are basically a volume game. China has the scale to drive innovation and more flexible pricing models.
The Chinese consumer, in many ways, is similar to Western consumer in terms of desire for data privacy. Misuse by unscrupulous merchants raises concerns. However, Chinese authorities have demonstrated that these breaches will not be tolerated.
Security is an issue but it does not halt the take-up of technology by the consumer. We also see many corporates take security seriously, and it's important to not underestimate the power of demand. People want this technology and like it benefits.
The Chinese consumer is leading the way in terms of technology take-up and innovation.
Just as the world's largest luxury market now sits in China, so too does the world's largest mobile banking market, and so too will cloud infrastructure. This bodes well for the Chinese consumer who will have access to the best state of the art technology globally.
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